Florida man charged with throwing explosive at Capitol riot
By Andrea Cambron and Holmes Lybrand
The FBI on Tuesday arrested a Florida man accused of setting off an “explosive device” in the US Capitol tunnel during the attack on January 6, 2021.
In one of the most violent scenes of the Capitol riot, a line of police officers protected an entrance to the building against violent rioters who used poles, bats, fists, stolen riot shields, chemical spray and, according to court documents, small explosives to attack the officers.
Daniel Ball, 38, of Homosassa is facing multiple charges in connection with his involvement in the Capitol attack after being arrested last week by the Citrus County Sheriff’s Office for allegedly assaulting seven people including two law enforcement officers in unrelated charges in Florida.
Ball was identified by his probation officer, after officers showed several photos and videos of him throwing an explosive device at the lower west terrace tunnel, where officers were defending the Capitol.
Footage from the violent scene at the tunnel — where former Metropolitan Police Officer Michael Fanone was dragged into the crowd, who beat and tased him — shows Ball appear to hunch over, light a fuse and throw the explosive device which “exploded multiple times” on the officers in the tunnel, according to court documents.
Police officers at the Capitol said it sounded like a bomb or grenade going off, with some experiencing hearing impairment lasting months, according to court documents.
Some officers said they “thought they were going to die” and described the explosion as “the most memorable event of the day.”
According to court documents, an FBI explosives expert who examined the photos and videos of the explosion at the tunnel “was not able to conclusively identify the precise dimensions, charge size, or whether the explosive device thrown was improvised or commercially manufactured.”
Ball faces multiple charges, including assaulting police officers, engaging in physical violence at the Capitol and entering a restricted area with a deadly or dangerous weapon.
The-CNN-Wire
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CNN’s Tina Burnside contributed to this report.
